> I had a chance to paddle Mike's Arctic Tern at Port Townsend, after having
> only paddled my Cape Charles. We had a good discussion comparing the two
> boats. I think that the CLC might be a better boat for a beginner, having
> a little more secondary stability and a much sharper stability curve. It
> is hard to dump, but once beyond a certain point it dumps quickly. The
> Arctic Tern is a smoother transition from primary to secondary, and I
> think might be a little better boat for the intermediate / advanced
> paddler. Mikes boat weighs less than mine and he commented on the
> difference in acceleration. Once up to speed I dont think that matters. My
> boat tends to stick its nose into the waves, I understand the Chesapeke
> design has corrected this. With a good hatch cover it rides up and doesn't
> let waves to the cockpit. A bad hatch, however, is an irritant that
> splashes you in the face. I'd strongly suggest fitting the CLC with a
> flush hatch. The Arctic Tern has quite a high profile and is a drier ride,
> no wash over the deck. Mike's boat, with its extra panel at the sheer,
> does not tend to bang the paddle on the sheer. I think that's the
> difference in stability, the CLC has a little more beam right at its
> sheer. Both are very good boats. Mikes is from a kit and mine from plans,
> and I think the kit boats go together a little better. With your
> woodworking experience that is not an issue. It was my first
> stitch-n-glue. Also, my boat gets it's stern pushed around in the rough.
> IMO, it needs a rudder and I use the rudder quite a bit in crosswinds and
> waves. With the rudder, surfing the waves is really fun! The CLC will pick
> up and go, compared to the other boats I paddled. I didnt get the Pygmy
> out in the rough, but am told it does not share this characteristic. I
> liked the Pygmy a lot. But keep in mind that I have only paddled it once,
> compared to at least a hundred hours on the CLC, so I have a much sharper
> image of my boat's faults than I do of Mike's. My priority at the show was
> to choose a strip boat so I concentrated more on those. Kind of a rambling
> response, my longest post. A fair comparison Mike?

That was fairly accurate from what I remember. The Arctic Tern also surfs easily. It gets pushed around more from waves than from wind, but I have never wanted a rudder on it. It is a big boat as Dean said in his post, but with appropriate padding it doesn't feel as big. I am starting to get used to my smaller (21" beam) skin boat now, and like the narrowness of it. The Tern loves chop though and when I'm paddling it I'm always looking for someplace to play. I compared the Tern to the Coho and found that the Coho is faster while the Tern turns sharper. The Coho has better primary stability, and the Tern better secondary.

I might have chimed in earlier but was off on a fishing trip in Idaho, I got back at 4:15 this morning.

Mike